Hollywood it's so wrong

I hate shopping. Everything I see that’s pretty on the racks it’s from size 00 to 04. The stores don’t believe anymore in offering regular sizes.  What’s wrong with being 07 or 09 or 12 or 14 or 15.  I will never be 04 nor 00. I am a big bone person.  I am so fed up with the concept of beautiful that everyone has on their mind. TV characters are not the real deal.  They’re either small frames or they have to starve themselves to be in TV.  Ughhhh, I wish there was something we could do to change this fake image of the perfect body. Any ideas?

i hate this argument.

do you go to a museum and complain that the art is too beautiful?  we can't all paint like that, so we shouldn't have to look at those beautiful paintings?

you're right: TV characters are not the real deal.  they're TV characters.  they're entertainment.  they have absolutely nothing to do with you (or me, or anyone else in the audience).

if the stores don't carry your size, complain to the management or go to different stores.  they wouldn't bring in those sizes if people weren't buying them.  they're not promoting hollywood; they're selling clothes.

I understand where you're comeing from here.  The media is so ficked on the perfect image.  I personally don't know anyone who is this 'size 0' and I very rairly see shops in the UK stock it.  Only place I know is George in ASDA (Walmart), it's the the 21 range, and it's aimed at 13-21+.  Kids are often size 0 and that's it.

I often get really frustrated when I go into shops here.  The sizes differ so much.  What I call a conventional size UK16 would be more like an UK18-22 in some of the more popular shops like Jane Norman.  I refuse to shop in those places because I don't see why I should have to go through the embarisment of getting larger sizes ordered in for me.  I'm seen underweight girls buy UK12 jeans in these places and leave in tears because they think their fat.

The Hollywood image has gone way too far.

pgeorgian- I shall stop buying in every store. I have curves and I am short, a bad mix for pants apparently. Back home I don't have that problem but here in the US I do, and believe me, I been to a lot of malls, not only in the state Im currently living at.

Some people are naturally thin / small boned, kinda like how you are naturally curvy / big boned.

dinzzy - plenty of stores have more than a size 4. I've never been a size 4, and I'm clothed most of the time.

However, if you are short, it can be difficult - each clothing line takes a clothing item and scales it up or down for a certain waist-height ratio, and if you are shorter than that ratio, it can be very frustrating.

What a lot of people do is they tailor their clothes. You can pay to have it done, or if you have a sewing machine (or a friend with one), you can tailor your own stuff. It's frustrating, for sure, but it isn't Hollywood - it's mass production.

Maybe the stores are out of the regular sizes, and that is why you find an abundance of "tiny" clothes. I don't think "everyone" thinks the very slender TV characters are real.  Most people know it's their job to be skinny, and they have a whole support system to keep them that way -- personal trainers, chefs, whatever it may be.  If I had that kind of pressure, I am sure I would not be in the situation I am now. 

Just like I hate how hard it is for me to lose weight, it is very hard for some people to gain it.  Very hard. I agree that some stars may starve themselves to be skinny, but some really cannot help it.

I think it's best to not feel like we are being held to some standard based on the size on a clothing tag, or what is stocked in stores.  I certianly would look horrid as a size 4.

I definitely understand this problem.  I'm fairly lucky--since I'm pretty short, I can get away with wearing size 4-6, though I usually have to take pants to the tailor to get them hemmed.  But when I was in high school, I was size 14-16, and none of the "cool" clothes that my peers wore ever seemed to come in my size.

I do wish that the media were more accepting of different body types.  Obviously, fashion models are beautiful.  But they also have the body type that's trendy nowadays--very tall, very thin, and without curves so as to look boyish or prepubescent.  We see a little more variation with celebrities, who are allowed to have more curves. (And the way I see it, "curvy" is not a euphamism for "fat," it means ample hips, chest, and rear with a narrow waist.)  But still, the super-skinny ideal is promoted so strongly to the point at which so many people don't seem to have any idea how to dress for their body type... despite the fact that the ladymags all seem to have an article every month about "the best clothes to flatter YOU."

I'm not fat, but I have a very narrow waist with wide hips, a medium-size chest, and athletic limbs.  I know, for example, that I need to wear clothes that are either tight on top or have a cinched waist, otherwise I look much larger than I am.  It's really irritating when that's not the "in" look that season.  (Therefore, consignment, thrift, and vintage shopping FTW.)

This is why most major department stores have an entire section devoted to petites.  I can sometimes get away with the petite size since I'm borderline, but not most of the time...pity since they usually have killer sales.

Original Post by dinzzy:

pgeorgian- I shall stop buying in every store. I have curves and I am short, a bad mix for pants apparently. Back home I don't have that problem but here in the US I do, and believe me, I been to a lot of malls, not only in the state Im currently living at.

are you trying to imply that there's some kind of dirge of short curvy people in the US?  i don't think so.  regardless, you can't blame what's in the malls on hollywood.  i seriously doubt that the girls from 90210 are keeping your malls in business.

You probably could be a size 4 if you worked out all the time and ate very healthy like some tv stars do.  I used to use big boned as an excuse all the time, but once I stopped doing that I lost more weight.  It is good to be happy with the size you are, but it's not good to use excuses like big-boned to be overweight (which I'm not saying you are...I don't know you).

What bothers me is that it is so gender-biased in hollywood.  The men seem to be any size and age and still get roles.  It's the women that are always so tiny.

as someone whos been obese my whole life, i have come to accept that its not the world's repsonsibility to cater to obese people.  it would be wonderful (and probably really good for business) if all the stores carried cute clothes in bigger sizes, but its not anyones job to cater to overweight people.  stores can sell whatever they want (as long as its not illegal).  there are stores out there, like avenue, that only sell clothes for people size 14 and up which leaves out the skinny people.   at the end of the day, you just have to work your way around your obstacles and find a routine or way of life that makes you happy. 

You know Dinzzy, I hear you!  For me, the problem is that I have a totally round butt.  The kind of bum that's apparently really popular at the moment (LOL!)  No clothes are designed for this.  I have legs that I'm very happy with, the rest of me is "normal" but I have a total Kim Kardashian bubble butt.  Try buying a pair of jeans that fit.  I usually have to try something one size bigger than I should but then the waistband sticks out in the back.  Slacks just don't fit and usually have to be altered. 

Last year, I was on vacation in Los Angeles and took a stroll in around Rodeo Drive and stepped into a few shops.  My experience was just like what you said.  There was nothing to be had bigger than size 4 and in one store, the size "Large" I found wouldn't have fit anyone over 110 pounds.  Did I ever save a lot of money LOL!!!

I don't believe the analogy about the museum is applicable.  Sure, people on TV and in the movies are SKINNY.  Kids want to emulate what they see on TV and what they perceive to be "cool" and what looks like is effortless.  They end up frustrated and hating themselves sometimes, because in the real world, this just isn't possible for everyone but there isn't another measure of beauty they can aspire to.  It's either BE skinny or obsess about how to get skinny. 

I am 5'8, 130 lbs, size 2... if they stop carrying my size I'll be pissed.

Its supply and demand, stores want to make money so they wouldn't carry clothes that didn't sell.  

Original Post by linzelosin:

Maybe the stores are out of the regular sizes, and that is why you find an abundance of "tiny" clothes.

 I think a lot of times this could be the reason. There are usually TONS of size 0 and even more 00 when I go shopping for jeans, but that's because most people aren't 0 or 00. The more popular a size is the less there is going to be of it.

I know this isn't ALWAYS the case, but it definitely could explain why there's a lack of average sized clothes sometimes.

why do you think most movie stars and models are famous? cuz theyre thin! if they were bigger then they would be criticized, look at jessica simpson! she gained a few and everyone had an article on her that basically said "jessica is FAT!" now she will probably feel horrible and starve herself and then everyone will say she's too THIN. no matter what size you are, you will be judged... as for clothing i agree with jblarghp and linzelosin, maybe the store ran out of the sizes... anyway thin is beautiful in some peoples eyes because its rare. why are half the people on this site here? to be thinner!

didnt mean to get harsh so if i offended anyone im sorry...

I have to say that even when I was skinny (before kids), I had tons of problems finding pants that fit.  I have a butt, even at 110 I did, and to get my butt to fit the pants, inevitably the waist was crazy huge.  Add that I am short and that pants were routinely 5 inches too long and I looked ridiculous.  It can be very frustrating.  This may sound lame and momish but Land's End is an example of a store that sells to ALL body types and they sell clothes at the not terribly trendy but widely available Sears.  It may not be the sexiest place to shop, sorry Sears, but if you want a pair of jeans that fit, it's worth checking out. 

Having gotten off on that little sidebar, I think I get your drift.  The public's image of what defines a beautiful woman is one-dimensional and unrealistic. Personally, I wonder how some of these actresses get up in the morning when the whole world is constantly judging them based on you appearance.  They lose a couple pounds and people call them anorexic.  They gain and suddenly they are being teased for having cellulite.  It's horrible. 

The irony is that most men don't even like these crazy skinny women.  My husband makes comments constantly about women on TV that he says look like boys or waifs because they are so thin.  We watch Lost and he says Evangeline Lily is ugly because she looks like a 12 year old boy, in other words, no curves. (I think she's gorgeous.)

I totally understand where you are coming from I am short, busty and round. I don't live in hollywood I live in a beach city in LA county.  It is a shame I can't go to any of the local shops.  There are tons and tons of nice clothing shops in Manhattan beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach.  Most of the stores you can't find anything bigger than a very small 8.  It is a different animal living in southern California. So I feel your pain Dinzzy.  Yes, I can go to Target, Walmart and a few other stores, but I have to travel not in my local (walking distance) area.

You'd think the stores would clue in.

Every time I go - sizes 8-12 are gone.  They are the first sizes picked out and purchased by customers.  Go to the sales racks and whats left.... 0-4!  Why do they make so many skinny clothes if the ones in demand are made for the 'average woman'. 

Original Post by canuckabroad:

You'd think the stores would clue in.

Every time I go - sizes 8-12 are gone.   

 Agreed!  When there are sales the smalls are always there, some mediums and almost no large sizes.  One would think they would have a clue!  I am not huges...........weight 154 now but I buy large t's, sweaters etc.  Not sure how the really large sizes find sweaters to wear.  But who ever thought business was run with the consumer in mind!  and that is why we are where we are now!

I agree with the poster and disagree wholeheartedly with pgeorgian--Hollywood characters have everything to do with culture and...US. The thing about Hollywood is that it is covered intensely by the media. And what we see in the media "normalizes" certain bodies, personalities, behaviors, etc. etc. through a constant barrage of images and discourse.  Media coverage extends certain discourses and obscures others and, because there is so much of it, we often internalize it without critically engaging with it and thinking, for example, "that magazine cover was completely photoshopped! It's sillyl to think I can look like that."

While Hollywood is not to "blame" for any one individual's weight gain, one need only read through some of the comments on these boards to know that women in general have an extremely distorted view of their own bodies and what "normal" bodies look like--all of which has led (sadly) to a culture of self-loathing women.

The way to empowerment, as I see it, is the rejection of the media's Hollywood-as-normal mentality and, most importantly, embracing your own physical empowerment. Empowerment does not come from fitting into a size zero (whose standard of "good" is that anyway??).

  I stronglyl think women need to find empowerment through the strength of their own bodies. Two years ago I ran a half marathon for the first time and I must say, the feeling of euphoria at the finish line was an amazing high. The other day at the gym I lifted more on bench press than I did since college (where I was a college athlete) and felt really good about myself all day. I love when a run feels easy or when I beat all the guys I play basketball with down the court.

We have got to start seeing our bodies as sites of strength and empowerment and less as these pieces of clay that we need to mold into OTHER people's ideas of perfection.